Once again the goal of the farm is to provide clean food in all ways possible..

We hatched and raised-butchered over 2016

17 Quail

15 ducks

15 chickens

1 turkey

37 rabbits

13 lambs or yearling sheep

2 pigs (big pigs)

Eggs

We harvested eggs from

Turkey

Ducks

Geese

Quail

Chickens

Milk and Milk products that come from said milk.

Sheep

Goat

I can not tell it like it is. I still prefer sheep milk over goat..

Soft Fruits and Hard Fruits

I am hedging on a few things, based on how many jars I put up of this and that, because I didn’t get everything weighted this year.. but my rough guess is 450 pounds.

Rhubarb

Strawberries

rasberries

elderberry

grapes

crabapples

high bush cranberries

Gooseberries

black currents

Red currents

White Currents

Clove Currents

Blue Berry

Garden

It was a very poor year and with the numbers I do have we did between

1600 to 1800 pounds

That includes farm forage as well as planted foods and we would not have this at all if not for potato’s and sunchokes and buckets worth of tomato’s. and beets, lets not forget the beets.. they did not bad..

This puts me well behind what I normally produce.. but that is what happens when you don’t produce at least a thousand pounds worth of squash and pumpkin!

Out of what was produced as always I figure a min of 25 percent becomes animal fodder.. so that means around 1200 pounds worth of useable people food.

We invested 485 dollars into seeds, plants and new fruit tree’s in 2016

We harvested just Shy of 2000 pounds worth of meat in one form or another..

We brought a lovely beef calf and are raising him up till next year.. We raised three kittens, adopted one more and were “gifted” two more for a total of six new farm cats.. the purr pride of 2016 are strong, healthy, colorful, sweet and sassy.. all the boys are fixed and we are slowly but surely getting the females done as they age into it.

Brandy Girl Crossed over.. in late fall.. she is missed daily.

Caleb truly did not like being a herd of one and we began looking for a new horse for the farm.. We were pleased to add in Bo just shy of Christmas 🙂

The farm is gearing up in this cold part of winter, many big an getting bigger bellies growing next years crop, breeding pairs, trio’s and little herds are all set up.. garden plans and prep is done.. soon enough, the grow lights will not be for microgreens but for seed starting 🙂

12 years we have been at our little farm and we have learned as one season ends, so another begins…

12 Responses to Farmgals Year End Review

Caleb is firmly head of the herd as he was with Brandy an Bojangles was a middle of the herd before and he is lower in rank.. no issues, they have a true br0-mance going on.. they adore each other.. but the funny was that Caleb who normally does not like to go to a stall, was put out that Bo was being stalled, while we were off the farm or evening and night, he is being allowed out while we can watch and keep a eye on them but otherwise, being put in the barn until we can deal with the “fence issue” and Caleb with a pout on his face stall himself last night, in the prime big one, and Bo very happy went to the big double corner stall LOL It was funny..

Thank you, I am going to be making one of your awesome fence line feeders for our farm this year as well. I will link it up to yours again.. love it! such a grand idea, anything that saves hay while keeping tummies full.. win-win 🙂

Did you see the new one we built this week? It worked MUCH better to use the 4×4 livestock panel as originally planned. We will be building another one for the ram pen later this spring as well. They have worked so well for us, once we got the kinks worked out. 🙂

I did see it, made a lot of sense for the 4 by 4.. I really like it! It was what made hubby give the eye to the big old out of use dog crate, It works like a charm for the goat pen.. the door opens, we stuff the hay in the top, put the bottom with its bigger holes on the front, raised it up off the ground and the goats put their heads in to eat.. the reduced hay use in the goat pen.. outstanding!

My word, when ever I get back to Ontario to visit my mother I would surely love to meet you. What you accomplish every year is truly astounding. I don’t recall you ever writing about much external help. It’s really impressive. I’m moving into year 3 growing season on our small farm but have been at this lifestyle for over a decade now. Figuring out what works and doesn’t definitely requires re assessment every year. Bravo. And thank you for all you share.

Thank you Marney, u are so right, you must always be flexable an willing to both try new things an at the same time be willing to end or reduce programs that do not work for you.. Congrats on year three, you can do it

Over the years I have had very little external help, 2016 was different in that regards, I will write about it.. I did have one person who asked just the right way to come for six hours or so weekly to learn and give me a helping hand.. it was strange, wonderful and very good for me to need to verbalize why things were being done the way there were

Yes, would love to hear about your experience in this respect. Am experiencing more trouble than wish with my joints at mid life and while we both my husband I have a permaculture design certificate, there are going to be times moving forward where outside help is going to be needed. How to engage in that is important to figure out. Husband is an introvert who is big on not asking for help unless he can outright pay. The dilemma this presents is things move slower than…Will be spending 2017 earnestly engaged in lively hoods design and development, this 2.35 acres needs to begin to earn it keep.

hi, I so here you on the introvert hubby, have one of those myself.. I am on the line, I can be on but its draining to me to hold it for many hours, I can do four to eight well, if its over 12 in a row, I can struggle much more

Farmgals Bucket List : Farmgal's Bucket List

I am sorry to have this rant, I might not even post this.. I most likely will and I am sure I will lose a reader or two.. but I have to write this.. If you live in an apartment or a tiny condo in the city, you can be many things.. You can be […]

Ok, its just going on record that we are going to be “in just in time mode” on most things this year. Let me give a example.. we have pulled at least a hundred or two wild parsnips but then we needed to focus on this or that.. and suddenly this week, we are like.. […]